Joseph Patrick Hurley - Early Life and Education

Early Life and Education

Joseph Hurley was born in Cleveland, Ohio, one of nine children of Michael and Anna (née Durkin) Hurley. His parents were both Irish immigrants; his father was originally from County Mayo, and his mother from Sligo. Hurley received his early education at Holy Name School from 1901 to 1909, and then attended St. Ignatius High School until 1912. He was the only one among his siblings to continue his education past age 16. He applied to West Point, for which he was nominated by U.S. Representative Robert J. Bulkley before it was discovered that Hurley was not an actual resident of Bulkley's 21st congressional district. Had he been admitted to West Point, he would have been a member of the famed class of 1915 ("The class the stars fell on"), which included such figures as Dwight D. Eisenhower and Omar Bradley.

Hurley attended John Carroll University in Cleveland from 1912 to 1915. At John Carroll, he was president of the College Debating Society and the speaker at the commencement ceremony. He also played football for the Geiger Clothes Company team, earning the nickname "The Breezer." He began his studies for the priesthood at St. Bernard's Seminary in Rochester, New York, and was assigned to further theological studies at St. Mary's Seminary in his native Cleveland in 1917. During his summer vacations at St. Mary's, he worked as a naval observer in Sandusky.